Contact breaker assemblies



Oct. 20, 1970 JUKES Q CONTACT BREAKER ASSEMBLIES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 5. 1968 INVE'NTOR ATTORNEYS,

Oct. 20, 1970 N. A. JUKES 3,535,477

I CONTACTBREAKER ASSEMBLIES I Y Filed Feb. 5. 1968 2 Sheets-Shet 2 I'BY ATTORNEYS INVENTOR United States Patent 7,009/ 67 Int. Cl. H01h 9/54; H01r 11/22 US. Cl. 200-19 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE -In a contact breaker assembly, for use in an ignition distributor of a road vehicle, the spring which urges the fixed and movable contacts into engagement with one another is electrically connected at one end to the movable contact and is fixed at its other end in insulated relationship, to the support plate of the contact breaker assembly. The fixed end of the spring is shaped to define a clip for the reception of a blade connector through which the spring, and therefore the movable contact, is electrically connected to an ignition coil in use.

This invention relates to contact breaker assemblies, for use in ignition distributors, of the kind including a plate which is angularly movable relative to the cam shaft of the distributor in use, fixed and movable contacts movable with the plate, and movable contact including an insulating cam follower pivotally engaged with the plate, and a conductive spring one end of which is secured to the cam follower and the other end of which is fixed relative to the plate, the spring urging the cam follower in use into engagement with the cam shaft, the arrangement being such that in use, the movable contact is connected through the spring to an ignition coil while the fixed contact is earthed, the movable contact being moved into and out of engagement with the fixed contact in response to rotation of the cam shaft of the distributor.

According to the invention in a contact breaker assembly of the kind specified the spring defines at its end remote from the cam follower a clip for the reception of a blade connector through which the spring is electrically connected to the ignition coil in use.

In the accompanying drawings, FIG. 1 is a sectional plan view of an ignition distributor utilizing a contact breaker assembly according to one example of the invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view" of the contact breaker assembly shown in FIG. 1 but to a larger scale, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of part of the assembly shown in FIG. 2 but to an enlarged scale, FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the capacitor shown in FIG. 2 also to an enlarged scale, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the connector shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the connector shown in FIG. 5 in its unstressed position, its stressed position being indicated in dotted lines.

Referring to the drawings, there is provided a distributor including a casing 10 having secured therein a base plate 10a. The contact breaker assembly is housed within the casing 10 and includes a plate 11 which is parallel with the plate 10a and which is mounted for angular movement with respect to the cam shaft 10b of the distributor about a pivot post 11a. Supported by the plate 11 is a fixed contact 12 having associated therewith a movable contact 13, the fixed contact being electrically connected to the plate 11. The movable contact 13 is carried by an insulating cam follower 14 which is pivotally engaged with a post 14a upstanding from the plate 11. One end of a conductive spring 15 is secured to the cam follower 14, and is electrically connected to the contact 13 by a conductive strap 13a, the other end of 3,535,477 Patented Oct. 20, 1970 the spring 15 being engaged with an insulating block 16 of channel shaped cross section which is secured to a lug 17 integral with the platell. The spring 15 in use urges the cam follower 14 into engagement with the cam shaft of the distributor and the arrangement is such that rotation of the cam shaft caused the movable contact 13 to move into and out of engagement with the fixed contact 12.

The spring 15 extends beyond the block 16 and its end portion 15a is bent to lie substantially parallel with the main portion of the spring 15. A blade connector 19 having a lead 21 connected thereto is gripped between the main portion and the portion 15a of the spring 15 and thereby serves to electrically interconnect the lead 21 and the contact 13 through the spring 15.

The other end of the lead 21 is electrically connected to one limb 24 of a resilient conductive connector 22. The connector 22 is in the form of a generally V shaped member 23 having integral limbs 24, 25. The limb 24 is formed with a longitudinally extending slot 26, the end 27 of which is adjacent the free end of the limb 24, and is semicircular, its centre of curvature lying on the longitudinal centre line of the limb 24. The limb 25 is formed with a circular hole 28 of radius equal to the radius of the end 27 of the slot 26 in the limb 24, the centre of the hole 28 lying on the longitudinal centre line of the limb 25. The slot 26 and the hole 28 are so arranged that if the member 23 is flexed so that the limbs 24, 25 are parallel, then the end 27 of the slot 26 and the hole 28 will not be co-axial. The limb 24 of the member 23 also has connected thereto a second lead 29 which serves in use to connect the connector 22 through a terminal 30 carried by, but insulated from the casing and through the primary winding of an ignition coil to a DC. supply, for example the battery of a road vehicle in which the contact breaker is utilized.

The contact breaker assembly further includes a capacitor 18 having a first terminal constituted by its casing and a second terminal in the form of a cylindrical post 31 with which the connector 22 is engaged.

In order to interengage the post 31 and the connector 22, the connector 22 is flexed so that the limbs 24, 25 extend parallel to one another, the post 31 is then inserted through the hole 28 and the slot 26. The post 31 has a diameter slightly less than the diameter of the hole 28 and the width of the slot 26, and is formed with a circumferential groove 32. The connector 22 is then released and by virtue of their resilience the limbs 24, 25 spring apart thereby engaging part of the periphery of the hole 28 and the part 27 of the slot 26 within the groove 32.

In use the lead 29 is connected to the primary winding of the ignition coil and the plate 11 and the casing of the capacitor 18 are earthed through the plate 10a. Thus the movable-contact 13 is connected to the DC. source and the capacitor 18 is connected across the contacts 12, 13.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A contact breaker assembly, for use in an ignition distributor, of the kind having:

a plate,

an insulating cam follower,

means mounting the cam follower for pivotal movement relative to the plate in use,

a fixed contact,

means mounting the fixed contact on the plate,

a movable contact,

means mounting said movable contact on said insulating cam follower,

a conductive spring, and,

means securing one end of said spring to said insulating cam follower and electrically interconnecting 3 4 I said spring and said movable contact, the improvedirection to engage said movable contact with ment comprising; said fixed contact.

a conductive terminal clip defined at the other end of said spring by a portion of said spring which References Cited is bent back upon itself, and which is capable 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS of receiving a terminal blade, so that an electrical connection can be made through said clip 1314182 8/1919 Brown 339 26O XR and said spring to said movable contact 2452372 10/1948 Harkness 74-567 2,877,442 3/1959 Gettig.

an insulating block, and I means mounting said insulating block on said 10 2962693 11/1960 plate, said insulating block being engaged by ROBERT SCHAEFER Primary Examiner said other end of said spring, and said insulating block constituting an anchorage for said SCOTT, Assistant .EXamiIlef other end of said spring, so that said spring urges said insulating cam follower to pivot in a 15 339.45 r 

